Internal-combustion engine.



G. C. SNELL. lNTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATlON HLED JUNE I7, 1918.

Patented Oct. 29, 1918.

a. c. SNELL. INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE. APPLICA'HON FILED JUNE 17- !QIBP 2 sns nv-suen 2.

'FJ'ZEZIE.

W N T M Paten ed Oct. 29, 1918.

GEORGE C. SNELL, OF SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented @ct. 29, 191%.

Application filed June 17, 1918. Serial No. 240,436.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Gnonon C. SNELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Jose, in the county of Santa Clara and State of California, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Internal-Combustlon Engines, of which the following is a speclfication.

This invention relates to improvement in internal combustion engines and primarily to those of the four cycle type used in automobiles, aeroplanes, and the like, and the objects of my invention are:

First, to provide an internal combustion engine that will weigh less per horse-power developed, and that will have fewer reciprocating parts than those of this class now in use.

Second, to provide an internal combustion engine that will run with less noise and vibration and one in which the cost of manufacture will be less than the engines of this class now in use.

Third, to provide an internal combustion engine that will occupy less space per horsepower developed and one in which the number of wearing parts are reduced to a minimum.

Fourth, to provide an internal combustion engine that will have a working stroke of the piston to each revolution of the crankshaft and one in which the burnt gases are expelled from the cylinders before the intake of explosive gases commences to enter the combustion chambers.

A further object is to generally improve this class of internal combustion engines so "as -to increase their usefulness, durability and efficiency.

With these and other objects in view, the invention resides in certain novel features of construction and in the unique combination of parts to be hereinafter fully described 5' and claimed, it being understood that vari- 4 ous changes in form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims. Reference is to be had to the accompany ing drawing, forming a part of this specification, in which similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views. Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of my internal combustion engine showing the position of parts at the moment of combustion in the upper combustion chamber.

Fig. 2 is a cross section through the 001m bustlon chamber of the upper cylinder, as

shown on line 22 of Fig. 1, showing the revolving sleeve and the ports.

Fig. 3 is a cross section through the lower combustion chamber as shown on line 3-3 of Fig. 1, showing theports, revolving sleeve, and the two diameter piston.

Fig. 4 is a cross section through the upper cylinder and piston, as shown on line H of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a cross section through the lower cylinder and piston as shown on line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view of the thrust bearing and adjusting mechanism in the head of the cylinder.

My improvement in internal combustion engine forming the subject matter of the present invention comprises a two diameter cylinder 1 having bores 1= and 1". said cylinder being supported by an appropriate type of crank case 2 and being provided With a cooling system of any appropriate type; a two diameter inner cylinder or revolving sleeve is shown at 3, having bores 3 and 3 and being accurately fitted to the cylinder bores 1 and 1", and is adapted to be revolved therein. A two diameter reciprocating piston is shown at 4-4= slidable in said inner cylinder or sleeve bores 3 and 3 and being connected to a crank shaft 5 by connecting rod 6. bearings of the usual type being used and forming no part of the,

present invention. the two diameter piston having the usual equipment of piston rings on both-the upper and lower parts as shown at 77. In the inner wall of the revolving sleeve near the lower end of the upper bore 3 is shown a plurality of contracting piston rings 8 adapted to snugly encircle the piston 4:. Combustion chambers are shown at 9-10, the combustion chamber 9 being formed by the difference in diameter of the inside of the lower bore of the revolving sleeve 3 and the, upper part of the piston 4 and .in practice I find that the cubic contents of the combustion chamber 9 should be a trifle greater than the combustion chamber 10 to compensate for the small loss of compression past the contracting piston rings 8, it being desirable to have the compression about equal in both combustion chambers. Each combustion chamber is provided with a plurality of intake ports 11---11 and exhaust ports 121212 and 12, as shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5, which Show the parts in position at the moment of combustion in chamber 10 and the point of opening the intake ports in combustion chamber 9. The revolving sleeve is also provided with a plurality of ports adapted to be brought into register with the ports in the cylinder 1-1 at proper intervals as the sleeve is revolved; openings for attaching the ignition means to each combustion chamber are shown at 13-43, which are so positioned as to register with ports in the revolving sleeve at proper intervals, The exhaust ports 12"12 are positioned at the lower end of the stroke and are the main exhaust ports for the discharge of the burntgases at the end of each working stroke; the exhaust ports 12-12 serve as scavenger ports, the burnt gases remaining being forced out through these ports on the up stroke of the piston. The revolving sleeve may be operated by any suitable mechanism, a system of bevel gears and shafts being shown for illustration. The arrangement of ports as shown requires the revolving sleeve to revolve at one fourth crank shaft speed, which I consider most efficient, but it is possible to revolve the sleeve at one-eighth crank shaft speed by doubling the ports in the sleeve or at one half crank shaft speed by decreasing the number of ports in the two diameter cylinder. The revolving sleeve 3 has a closed end 14 integral with the sleeve, a shaft integral with the end 14 is shown at 15 having shoulders 16 and 16*, said shaft turning in bearing 16 through the head of the cylinder. An ordinary type of thrust bearing is shown at'17 engaging shoulder 16 of the shaft 15. An adjusting nut is shown at 18 adapted to hold the thrust bearing in proper position, and to take the up thrust of the shaft 15, a second adjusting nut is shown at 19 having a lock nut 20. The nut 19 holds the shaft 15 in the bearing 16 and is for adjusting the end thrust of the shaft 15. To the shaft 15 and resting against shoulder 16 is shown a bevel gear 21 securely keyed thereon, said bevel gear meshing with a bevel pinion gear 22, which is keyed to shaft 23 journaled in the shaft support 24. To the outer end of shaft 23 is a bevel gear 25 meshing with the bevel-gear 26, which is securely fastened to upright shaft 27 journaled in suitable bearings 28-28.

The upright shaft 27 is geared to crank.

shaft 5 by bevel gears 29 and 30. The two diameter sleeve is thus caused to revolve when the crank shaft is revolved, the gear -tio being governed by the arrangement of the ports in the cylinder and revolving sleeve. In the illustration herewith the sleeve should revolve at one fourth crank shaft speed.

The operation of my improved internal combustion engine is as follows:

The revolving sleeve being geared to one fourth crankshaft speed, the parts in position as shown in the drawings are at the beginning of a working stroke of the upper piston in sleeve bore 3" and the point of opening the intake ports in sleeve bore 3 Any appropriate type of ignition may be attached to the engine and properly timed as in common practice and also an intake manifold admitting the explosive mixture may be attached to the intake ports, these attachments not being shown and form no part of the present invention. At the end of the working stroke started in bore 3 the revolving sleeve will have turned suflicient to close all ports in the upper combustion chamber 10 and to have opened and partly closed the main exhaust ports 12, thus allowing most of the burnt gases to discharge I through ports 12. The scavenger exhaust ports 12 of the upper cylinder now start to open. The lower piston has, on its downward stroke, drawn in an explosive mixture and the revolving sleeve has closed all ports in the lower combustion chamber 9. The following up stroke of the two diameter piston forces all remaining burnt gases out of upper bore 3 through exhaust ports 12 and compresses the charge in lower combustion chamber 9 and, at the end of this stroke, explodes this charge, giving the working stroke to the lower piston 4. The lower bore 3 of the two diameter revolving sleeve now goes through the cycle of operations that the upper bore 3 has just completed. The upper part 4 of the piston has, during the working stroke of the lower part 4, drawn in an sleeve has closedall ports in the upper bore.

3 and has opened and partly closed the main exhaust ports 12 and partly opened the scavenger port 12. The following upstroke of the two diameter piston k t -cleans out the lower bore 3 of the sleeve and compresses the charge in upper combustion chamber 10 completing the cycle. It is understood from the foregoing that the working stroke in one bore of the two diameter sleeve serves as the intake stroke in the other bore of the two diameter sleeve. The thrust on the revolving sleeve is taken bv the thrust bearing 17 and is controllled by adjusting nuts 18-49. v

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an internal combustion engine, the combination of a two diameter cylinder having bores of 'difierent diameters, the upper bore being the smaller; means for cooling said cylinder; a plurality of openings or ports near the upper end and near the lower end of each bore; a two diameter sleeve having bores of different diameters, said sleeve fitting the bores of said cvlinder and adapted to be revolved therein, the sleeve having one closed end and having openings or ports adapted to be brought into register with the ports in the cylinder as the sleeve is revolved, the area of the smaller bore in the sleeve being substantially equal to the difference in area between the smaller and larger bore; a shaft integral with the closed end of the revolving sleeve and extending 'parallelwith the axis of the bores, said shaft being provided with shoulders adapted to engage thrust bearings and having a bevel gear keyed thereon; a bearing in the upper end of the two diameter cylinder into which said shaft is journaled; a plurality of annular grooves 1n the inner wall near the lower end of the upper or smaller bore of the revolving sleeve, a plurality of inwardly contracting metal packing rings adapted to seat in said grooves; a two diameter piston slidable in said two diameter revolving sleeve, the upper and lower parts of the piston having expanding piston rings adapted to expand outwardly against the inner walls of the revolving sleeve, the inwardly contracting packing rings contracting against the upper part of the two diameter piston near the lower end thereof, said piston being adapted to slide back and forth in the revolving sleeve, the sleeve being provided with mechanical means for revolving the same a certain portion of a revolution to each stroke of the piston, substantially as shown and described.

52. In an improvement in internal combustion engines comprising, a cylinder having the upper bore fports, near the upper end and near the lower end of each bore in the cylinder; openings or ports near the upper end and near the lower end of each bore in the sleeve adapted to be brought into register with the ports in the cylinder at predetermined periods as the sleeve is revolved; a two diameter piston slidable in the bores of said sleeve; a plurality of annular grooves in the inner wall of the sleeve; a plurality of contracting metal rings adapted to rest in the annular grooves and to contract against the sides of the piston thereby forming a tight packing between the piston and sleeve; a bearing through the head of the cylinder and concentric with the bore thereof; a shaft integral with the sleeve and adapted to turn in said bearing; means for holding the shaft in said bearing and mechanical operative means for revolving said shaft and sleeve a certain part of a revolution to each stroke of the piston, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE C. SNELL. WVitnesses STANLEY MILLER, O. M. VROOMAN. 

